So i am not completely new to fish keeping. My parents have had a tank since i was little and i have always understood and helped them to keep it up. That being said this may sound like a silly question. I have an established 15 gal tank. I had 2 balloon mollies which then had fry. Im down to 8 fry. I moved to 2 adult balloon mollys to my parents tank since mine i felt was starting to get crowded. Then someone gave me 3 red cherry shirmp. I put them in my tank to see how everything would go. I now only can find 2. Idk what happened to the male but i havent seen him in a few days. While reading up on these adorable guys i discovered that gravel is ok but i would like to change the tank to the fluval shimp substrate. Now for the (strange?) question. Can i take all the gravel out and put the new substrate in and then put the fish back in? Since it is an already established tank i dont see anything wrong with this BUT i dont want to do anything until i get an answer. Im not new to fish keeping but this is my first experiences with shrimp. Sorry if this sounds stupid but the only time i have ever changed substrate was to set up a brand new tank.
strange question
- Thread starter babydragons
- Start date
Yes, you can absolutely change out your substrate. However, a lot of the beneficial bacteria lives in the gravel so you may send your tank into a mini-cycle when you get rid of it. You can help by keeping a bunch of the gravel, put it into a nylon bag (pantyhose works great) and putting it back in the tank for a while. Also make sure to test the water daily for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate and be prepared to do daily water changes if you see a spike in ammonia. Also, are you changing out your filter media each time you do a water change? Don't - better to just rinse in old tank water, thus keeping the beneficial bacteria going, which will also help avoid a mini-cycle.
Sorry 2 more. When you say to put the gravel bag in the tank for a while how long about is that? Also I nor my parents have ever checked levels. We just keep up with our water changes and I end up switching filter media every other water change. Should I go get a test or just keep up with my water changes?
Yes, get a liquid test kit for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Don't worry about other parameters. A liquid test kit will help you through the substrate change and in my opinion regular water testing is an important part of tank maintenance. If you have unexplained deaths or your fish are 'acting funny', the first thing to do is check your water parameters.
Replacing filter media completely is usually unnecessary until it is falling apart. Just rinse it out in old tank water - like the water in the bucket you are going to chuck - and you not only save yourself $$ by not having to buy new media, but you also keep the beneficial bacteria that lives in the media.
Hard to say how long to keep the gravel bag in...that's where the test kit will come in. When you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and some nitrates showing, your tank is cycled and you can remove the bag. If you show any ammonia or nitrite, you need to do daily water changes to help the fish survive the toxic conditions. When your tank is cycled, do a water change any time the nitrate gets above 20ppm.
Cheers,
Laura
Replacing filter media completely is usually unnecessary until it is falling apart. Just rinse it out in old tank water - like the water in the bucket you are going to chuck - and you not only save yourself $$ by not having to buy new media, but you also keep the beneficial bacteria that lives in the media.
Hard to say how long to keep the gravel bag in...that's where the test kit will come in. When you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite and some nitrates showing, your tank is cycled and you can remove the bag. If you show any ammonia or nitrite, you need to do daily water changes to help the fish survive the toxic conditions. When your tank is cycled, do a water change any time the nitrate gets above 20ppm.
Cheers,
Laura